Change management processes have been around since the early 1960s, and there have been several models of change management over the years. These are three traditional models of change management that organizations still find effective today. During a crisis, the change curve is more volatile because there is a greater sense of uncertainty and urgency, since changes occur more frequently and employees must execute new processes and behaviors quickly. Change management is the process that companies and organizations use to implement changes by creating and delivering effective change strategies. When it comes to implementing a change management process, the most important thing to consider is when and how you will implement this change in your organization.
To effectively manage change, managers and business leaders must understand the steps involved. The preparation phase is the first step in the process, where the manager focuses on helping employees recognize and understand the need for change. For example, OpenTable configures workflows that automatically send internal customer requests to the IT agent with the most experience in that problem area, which can reduce the stress of the change process. Once the change initiative has been completed, it's essential to prevent a return to the previous state or status quo. To do this, managers must identify how the change will affect the organization and present the proposed changes to interested parties and get their acceptance.
It's also important to evaluate how the change affects different teams, gather feedback, and communicate the reason for the change in advance. During a crisis, it's necessary to adjust some of the steps in the traditional change process, while others are no longer possible, such as giving yourself the luxury of planning communications in advance. Harnessing this momentum from the start will not only help the change gain momentum, but it will also form a whole cohort of people in favor of change who can become product advocates in their own right when this change is implemented more broadly. By continuously improving your change management process every time a new update is released, you ensure that each transition is smoother than the previous one. Learn what a change management process is, who benefits from it, and what types of change management roles, salaries, and certifications are available.
